Sudan

Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon Excerpts

Friday 13th September 2024 Lords Chamber

[Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon (Con)]

My Lords, I thank the noble Lord, Lord Collins, the Minister, for tabling this important debate. As I stand to follow the noble Baroness, Lady Amos, I speak perhaps both for her and me, as we feel very much part—as I joked with my noble friend Lord Hunt—of a spiritual sandwich, following soon after the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Leeds and awaiting the contribution from the most reverend Primate the Archbishop of Canterbury. That shows the rich diversity, insight and experience of your Lordships’ House on this vital issue.

I seek your Lordships’ indulgence, for a moment or two, in extending for the first time in the Chamber my sincere congratulations to the noble Lord, Lord Collins, on his appointment as Minister for Africa. He has served this House incredibly well. I should know; in the last seven years, I often spent more time with him than with my family, in exchanges and debates at the Dispatch Box.

I share with noble Lords the importance of relationships within your Lordships’ House. There was one occasion that I am sure the noble Lord, Lord Alton, remembers all too well. I take your Lordships back to May 2019 and the case of Asia Bibi—a young lady escaping religious persecution. She was being persecuted simply for being a Christian. Many weeks—indeed, months—had gone into negotiations, with sensitive diplomacy across many countries. At a delicate point in the negotiations, I remember speaking repeatedly to the noble Lord, Lord Alton, over the weekend. As I came in on the Monday, I was alerted by my excellent private office that there was the risk of an Urgent Question being tabled by the other side by the then Leader of the Opposition.

My instant reaction was to immediately call the noble Lord, Lord Collins. I said to him, “Ray, I have an issue and I need to take you into my confidence”. I provided insight and context about what needed to happen. He did not waste a moment. He did what was needed and the Urgent Question was averted. I thank him for that; it is just one example of the many occasions that the noble Lord, Lord Collins, and I worked together, as we regularly do with noble Lords across the House, in ensuring that wisdom, experience, insights—and, at times, wit—are fully taken into account as we look to provide real, practical solutions to the problems that face the world.

I therefore welcome this debate and thank the noble Lord, Lord Collins, for his support, advice and insights, and for the enduring friendship that we have developed over the last seven years. I look forward to continuing that both within the Chamber and beyond.

We have already heard some incredible contributions in this debate on Sudan. Sudan is a country blessed by God. When I visited Sudan back in 2017 and again in 2019, there was great hope. Khartoum is where the White Nile and the Blue Nile meet, and I remember the importance of communities and civil society, which I will come on to in a moment or two, but also the importance of bringing communities together, religious communities as well. I therefore welcome the contributions from the Spiritual Benches.

When I visited Darfur, in my capacity as the Prime Minister’s Special Representative on Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict, I saw abhorrent practices at first hand. As we have heard from other noble Lords, young girls were being not just victimised but raped repeatedly and with impunity. So we must have accountability as we move forward and we need religious communities to be part of that conversation. I remember resolving the issue of Sunday no longer being given as a holiday for the Christian community. It was resolved not just by diplomacy by nations or by engaging with the then authorities; it came from bringing religious communities together.

We know all too well the humanitarian and economic challenges that Sudan faces. Many noble Lords have articulated them and I will not repeat them. I align myself with much of what has already been said by noble Lords, but the humanitarian situation is stark. Sudan has failed, and the responsibility is not just on Sudan; it is a collective responsibility, as the Minister articulated in his excellent opening.

Children and babies are caught up in this conflict. They face a stark choice: leave your country and travel to another country where you may or may not be looked after, or face the wrath of two generals, Burhan and Hemedti, who believe—absolutely ideologically—that they will end this war by killing each other and whoever sides with the other. That will not be the resolution to this conflict, or indeed others.

The economic challenges and religious and communal tensions must be addressed. We must look to all our regional partners and allies to find a collective solution to the challenges Sudan faces. Therefore, as we look towards what I hope will be real, practical pathways to peace, can the Minister tell us what the latest updates are on the various initiatives—as I myself knew about during my time at the Foreign Office—whether through the African Union, the Arab League or IGAD? I would welcome an update. We know the important role that regional partners can play and the influences they bring. The Minister has already given valuable updates on the engagement he has conducted, but what engagement have we had with key partners such as Egypt, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates?

In all these areas and all this diplomacy, at times we need to be inclusive, but we also need to be constructive. In my experience, however, at times we must be discreet, because that unlocks the potential solution.

The role of the United Nations is important, as we have heard from the noble Baroness, Lady Amos, and the Minister. Can he update us, as the penholder, on what more can be done beyond the Human Rights Council fact-finding mission and whether we can convene a meeting based on some of the recommendations from that report?

What of the important role of the United States? Was Sudan on the agenda in the recent discussions the Foreign Secretary had with Secretary of State Blinken, and in the discussions that are rightly taking place on resolving conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine? As has been said repeatedly, let us also not forget Sudan.

Inclusivity of approach is important. We have heard about the importance of civil society. I share with the Minister a plea that was hard in the making, as my noble friend Baroness Anelay knows all too well: we need women mediators at the table—not at the end or in another room; we need women mediators at the start. Whether we are dealing with issues of accountability around conflict-related sexual violence, or using and leveraging our experience, we have the structures in place within the UN and we have women who bring valuable experience. We must leverage that in resolving these issues. Conflicts are resolved, and peace agreements last longer, when women are involved at the start.

Accountability cannot be forgotten in all this. The ICC’s role is key. What engagement have we had with the ICC on setting up the mechanisms now to ensure that the solutions can be provided tomorrow?

The Minister informed us that the Government are looking at appointing special representatives. I look forward to their continuing the important work we started on preventing sexual violence in conflict, but let me mention one practical example. We saw mobile courts work well with partners such as Transparency International to bring justice locally and ensure that perpetrators are held to account. That practical measure is working in the DRC, and I hope it can be deployed in Sudan.

We need inclusive responses, transparent ways of working and discreet diplomacy when required. This is not an issue just for Sudan or the region; it has global implications for migration, the movement of people, accountability and the rules-based order system. I ask the Minister to continuously update your Lordships’ House on our efforts to ensure that this human catastrophe can be brought to an end.